"Three other proposals in the Business Roundtable’s roadmap also merit Mr Obama’s serious consideration. The first is its suggestion that, when designing new regulations, the administration should talk more with the firms that will be affected. Businesspeople fret that some parts of the executive branch—notably the Environmental Protection Agency—pay scant heed to the costs they impose. Forthcoming rules on air pollutants, for example, worry them a lot."

With 30+ years experience at EPA in providing analysis and review of Agency regulations, I offer a comment on the above.

Prior to issuing any major regulation (defined by executive order as any rule which may impose costs in excess of $100 million per year) the Agency engages in an extensive process of data-gathering, relying largely on information from affected firms. Entire forests (or universes of electrons) are laid waste in this effort. All of this information, by law, is made publically available for comment as part of the proposed rule. Again by law, EPA reviews and responds (no necessarily agreeing/making changes) before issuing a final rule. Accompanying any major rule at proposal is both a cost and economic analysis, as well as any scientific studies that support the rule. We also take comment on these and revise for the final rule. There are numerous meetings with 'stakeholder' as part of the rulemaking process. (I will not address the inevitable ensuing litigation when all of this is again chewed and more is added.)

In some instances, for example, the Clean Air Act statute bars our consideration of costs. ( I disagree with this but no President has yet seen fit to put me and like-midned souls on the Supreme Court.)

To say EPA does not talk with business nor pays attention to the costs of its rules is disingenuous at best, and frankly, in the case of the Round Table, dishonest; it knows better. "Crying wolf" about regulation is a basic business stategy, not only in the realm of the environment. Witness the furious lobbying now occurring to weeaken the implementation of the Dodd-Frank bill.

Dr Smith lauded the virtues of the 'invisble hand' in improving the material well-being of people but he entertained no illusions about the self-interest in the assemblies(e.g. the Business RoundTable) of the merchants whose efforts provided said improvement.